Elands bay, in South Africa, is the furthest windsurfing spot from Cape Town for day trips. But it can provide very exciting waveriding sessions.

 

Windsurfing, spot review: Elands Bay, South Africa

 

When staying in Cape Town for a windsurfing holiday, you typically stay in Table View, the closest and most convenient neighborhood to most of the spots that work best with the Cape Doctor (Sunset, Big Bay, Haakgat, etc). Read the specific article for all the advice on holidays in South Africa. However, there are some days when the wind doesn't come in well on these closer spots, and you have to drive to the more distant spots, such as Yzerfontein, Paternoster or Elands Bay. We got to try out Elands Bay on our last trip to South Africa in 2024, and the spot gave us a really fun session.

Elands Bay is located at North/North West of Cape Town, over two hours drive from Table View. To reach it, follow the R27 up to Veldriff (the last useful point to refuel your car before the spot), and then take a secondary road that initially follows the coast, then turns inland, goes over a pass, and finally it descends into the green valley that flows into Elands beach. After Veldriff, the landscape is arid and deserted, except for some cultivation permitted by irrigation systems. The greenery of the valley crossed by the Verlorenvlei river, therefore, relaxes and provides emotional relief, after a fairly monotonous last stretch.

Elands Bay, like Paternoster, and perhaps even more so, is a frontier village, a village made up of a few houses, and a few villas, mostly inhabited by fishermen. In the main "square", just before the parking lot of the spot (see map below), there is a small grocery shop, the Elands Bay Hotel, a shop/bar selling surfing equipment (see the slide gallery of the spot). In addition to the aforementioned hotel, and in private apartments, rentable through Airbnb, it is possible to stay in the guest houses (e.g. Elandsbaai Guest House), in the westernmost part of the village, before the port and Baboon Point.

 

 

 

 

In Elands Bay, you generally go when the wind is oriented from SSW or SW, and does not enter in the spots closest to Cape Town (high pressure center positioned offshore, North West of Cape Town). Furthermore, it must be taken into account that the rocky ridge, which starts from Baboon Point and extends towards the SE, acts as an accelerator of the wind (especially in the easternmost part of the bay), which can be much more intense than predicted by the meteorological models ( e.g. ECMWF). Elands Bay has a very long beach of fine white sand, which extends for kilometers, starting from the port.

Generally, you park your car in Strand street, near the "square" where the Elands bay Hotel is located, in the clearing indicated on our map, or along the aforementioned road. And you enter the sea on the stretch of beach in front of the parking point. This is the best choice in case the point break near Baboon Point doesn't work properly, and only a beach break rises in front of the main spot beach. If the Point Break is working, on days when a very significant swell comes from the open sea, it is better to enter into the water from the beach near the port, paying attention to the submerged rocks, and parking in the western part of the village. If there is no significant swell, only a beach break rises in front of the most north-eastern beach; however, waves, up to a couple of meters, can rise, which are very fun for jumping and for some waveriding. The height of the beach break improves at high tide. We have no experience of how the spot's Point Break works with big swells. Generally, it should be better at low tide (at high the waves get steep very close to the reef, probably). If you have any suggestions about that, post them in the comments.

 

Hang loose. Fabio

 

Click here for a slide gallery of a session in the spot.

 

A video shot in South Africa, with some sequences filmed in Elands Bay